


paint me blue.

by itssunnyweatheroutside



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Fluff, Love at First Sight, M/M, Pre-Relationship, artist!minhyuk, feat bickering kihyuk, kihyuk is art student buddies for life yesss, kihyun & shownu as cameo, pianist!hyungwon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-07
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-09-13 11:29:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16891758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itssunnyweatheroutside/pseuds/itssunnyweatheroutside
Summary: Minhyuk paints in color; bright, vivid, lively colors.Yet Minhyuk can't seem to figure out the color of Chae Hyungwon in his days, and he almost settle for grey. Until Hyungwon himself help him.





	paint me blue.

**Author's Note:**

> i'm having flu but I decide to do this because I'm jobless and need help with my life priorities lol
> 
> i hope everyone who reads this smile and have a little, happier day! xx

Eyes. Nose. Lips. _Lips._

What a plump, lavish set of lip, he thought to himself. Eyes fixated on the addictive sight, as he think of how deadly those pair of lip would be, if a gloss was put on top of it. Few seconds late, he had realized, the very owner of the lips looking straight at his ogling eye and open mouth. Minhyuk clear his throat in response, pack his sketchbook and pencil case and leave immediately. If anything, he runs a little on his way out.

When he reach home, he adds yet another note to his sketchbook; next to the facial structure study he did for the week.  
_red, because his lips is as luscious as a cherry. like cherry on top? to his already beautiful face._  
_ps. Hyunwoo should put a lipgloss over his lips oh my goodness it's too beautiful??_

His lips are tempting. Minhyuk wonders how Hyunwoo--a makeup artist friend of his--could hold the urge not to kiss his clients when his face gets real close to theirs, doing their makeup. Which is all the reason why Minhyuk isn't a makeup artist: because he will panic by the second he lock eyes with any ethereal human being.

Like what happened earlier in that one bar he frequents, when the beautiful pianist stare at him with his dreamy eyes.

_Eyes._

Yeah. Minhyuk hadn't have the time to properly exam the man's eyes. Nor he have the courage to stare at his eyes. One, in fear of the man staring back (he did that, a lot). But two, in fear of getting lost too deep in his gaze. Minhyuk only remember that his eyes are big, dolly, and brown in color. It looks a little sleepy, and he has obvious eye bag hanging under. Does his beautiful man not get enough sleep?

Minhyuk slap his head at the thought of calling the man 'his', lulling himself to a good night sleep. 

* * *

Minhyuk doesn't have drinking problems. Heck, he can't even drink. Yet he find himself seating neatly, like a kid waiting for his ice cream, in the front table of the bar, again. He orders soda like he always do, followed by ridiculing laugh from the waiters on the back. Minhyuk feels anything but comfortable--with the atmosphere, with people smoking, and young women going out with their sugar daddy. But he endures the awkwardness and comes back each Tuesday to buy another overpriced Coke.

For the man's eye. For the man. Period.

 

Minhyuk met this man of his own heart while he worked on his commission weeks ago. He's a broke art student.   
He's not really broke, art school simply costs a lot. Buying the tools, the damn printing, the Macbook (which he end up sharing with Kihyun his roommate anyway). So he opens art commission.

One day though, an NSFW request finally reach his inbox: getting steamy in a bar, that's all the person ask. They did not specify any scene, any detail, they just want the setting to be in a bar. And steamy.

Minhyuk don't like making NSFW art, and he did thought of drawing a steam locomotive inside a bar to troll the person, but he needs the money. So he went to check out a bar, 20 minutes away from his dorm. He didn't expect that he will be coming home with a finished commission, AND a crush.

He had himself totally swept off by what seems like a boring pianist. The man he adore was nothing like himself.

Minhyuk is bright, and loud. The man was calm, and maybe a bit gloomy. He love to stare into spaces blankly, as he run his fingers through the piano keys, before he close his eyes and feel his own melodies.

The man make smooth, subtle movements; his skinny fingers and body moves gracefully as he play. Minhyuk body moves in a grandeur way, because Minhyuk is very clumsy, and he bumps into things when he walks.

So the very first week he came back to see him, Minhyuk draw a sketch of him and paint him white.   
_because he's a literal angel, perhaps a fallen angel; he feels too surreal for this world,_ as Minhyuk wrote it in his sketch. Minhyuk even hangs a big yet vulnerable pair of wings on his back.

So here he is. Stealing glances toward the man's eyes, hoping he don't catch him on act. The piano man didn't, and Minhyuk freely sketch the extra details of his eyes.

 

 

When Minhyuk is done for the day, he re-examine the study of his eyes and make another note.  
_his eyes shine like a violet. so hazy, like midnight dream, or 5pm sky. that works too._

"What are you drawing?" Kihyun pops in from the back, peeking through his shoulder.

"N-nothing! Just- assignments..?" Minhyuk slap his book closed in the speed of light.

"Which assignment...? And by the way, you reek of alcohol." Kihyun sniffs. "Also a lot of smoke. Where have you been?"

"First of all Ki, your nostrils when you sniff me like a pet ain't attractive. Second of all, you sound like my mom."

"I am your mom. I cook for you, clean up our dorms for you, what else do I lack?"

"Hm if you're my mom maybe pay all the bills for me please?"

"Or I can just kick you out. You haven't answer my question. Where are you from, seriously? Did you get yourself a sugar daddy who takes you out drinking?"

"Kihyun! I'm not that broke?? Wow. Just working on some other commission to pay our flat, that's all."

Kihyun furrows his eyebrow. "I smell bullshit there.... but okay. Just know I'm locking you out past 11 pm unless you tell m your whereabouts."

Minhyuk just glare at their new established rule. But he knows Kihyun only do that out of concern. He just can't bring himself to tell Kihyun of how dumb and whipped he currently is, over a stranger. "Now help me pay our flat. What do you do if you can't pick a color theme for your painting?"

"Hmm.... I took a picture of the object and just color it exactly like my shot...?"

"I _know_ the exact color Ki, I'm not colorblind. I mean how do you pick the right color for the mood you want communicate?"

"I open Photoshop and test it with different edits...?"

"For fuck sake Ki, I'm a traditional artist, not a photographer?"

"Exactly? Why are you asking for my opinion then??"

"You're right. Let's just have dinner, I'm hungry..." Minhyuk puff his cheeks and pouts. 

* * *

 Minhyuk ticks his pencil. He comes back again for the nth time, only to find that the piano man is absent for the day. Perhaps he's sick? Or did he just stop performing there? He wanted to ask around, but he and the workers there has developed mutual cynicism.

He drew a dark shadow figure, and wrote,   
_black? because that's how my days are without him, why am I this bewitched, this gotta stop._

Minhyuk flips through his sketchbook. He had drew so many of the man in different colors with different notes. He knows he wouldn't dare to introduce himself and ask him out as he wish, so he wanted to have as much drawn memories of him. He also want to make an oil painting of the man, but that's the problem: 2 months passed and Lee Minhyuk still can't decide on a color palette.

He huffed and re-reads his notes.

_pink, because even the cherry blossom flowers fall at his beauty when he enters the room? because he made my heart like the streets of Seoul in Spring? blossoms beautifully with pink petals along the way_

 

_green, because his long fingers look like the Grinch's? wanna watch Christmas movie with him. does he like watching movies? what's his favorite movie? or... do we have to go to an opera or a play? he goes on date like normal people, right? I wish I could ask.._

 

_blue because he's so calm, and his gaze are as deep and mysterious as the dark blue ocean. problem is I can't swim. (well I am drowning in him right now, obv)_

 

_hm yellow is usually my color but I can paint him yellow too. his smile is small and held back yet it's brighter than my gummy smile, brighten than the sun herself? ugh, maybe yellow...??_

 

_brown! hmm paint him playing classic piano at home (OUR home)? bcs I want a brown paint on my future house. sounds good._

 

Minhyuk shakes his own head reading his notes. "What am I even writing... why am I like this?"   
He flicks his head lightly as he pack home. 

* * *

 

Minhyuk drags himself for another Tuesday evening at the bar. His newfound obsession for the stranger better be short-lived, and he needs to stop. So before he leaves the dorm for the night, he made a promise to himself and Kihyun.

"Yoo Kihyun, promise me. If I go out again next Tuesday and come home smelling like shit, please never cook for me for a month to teach me a lesson."  
"Don't ask why! I know you have a lot of questions but just- just promise me that for now!" Minhyuk bid goodbye and left Kihyun puzzled and annoyed (though Kihyun would love to not cook for him anymore).

Minhyuk doesn't sketch, doesn't doodle. He left his sketchbook open and empty, just enjoying the flowing tune the stranger creates. Minhyuk argues that he's seeing things, but he had notice the man looks at him with a warm smile tonight, throughout the 6 songs he played so far. Minhyuk slaps his cheek and excuse himself to the fancy bathroom of the bar.

It's been decided though, that he wants to paint him in grey.

_All shades of grey._

Because that's how the man made him feel. The color of his weeks are gone and replaced by his presence and his absence. Minhyuk appreciate the ambiguous nuance he puts in midst of Minhyuk's vibrant, colorful days. But Minhyuk knows they will remain _just a silhouette to each other's life: dull, and insignificant._ So he'll paint him as he is.

Minhyuk made his way back to his table. But he made sure to come by the waiters' counter and give them a little extra money."I know you guys made fun of me because I never drink and orders only soda. Here's some tip, buy yourself a nice meal so you can stop being petty to your customer."

Minhyuk knows it was a dick move to talk them down like that, but there's always a lot of dick in the bar and he figures it would be no problem if he adds one more just for the night. Especially that he's not coming back.

 

 

**_"Paint me in blue. - CHW."_ **

Minhyuk was more than perplexed when he found a wiggly worm writing on the blank sheet of his book. His mental alarm rings up and his face grows tomato-red when he sees that the narrow stage is left empty.

"Coke?" the tall man sits down and brings him 3 cans of his favorite soda. "I have a favorite beer, but I see that you don't drink. I'll have Coke with you." Minhyuk freeze, eyes widen and blinking uncontrollably.

"I like blue.. and I like you. And your cute little notes. And you're.. cute." Hearing this made Minhyuk blush; because he's so close to him, because he likes him and thinks he's cute.

"I'm Chae Hyungwon, and you are....?"

Stranger now has a name, Hyungwon. But his name should've been..   
"Mine...?"   
Minhyuk mutters his answer carelessly. "No, wait! I mean... Minhyuk! Lee Minhyuk. Ugh, I'm sorry."

Hyungwon giggles. "See? Cute." He grabs his sketchbook and open the pages gently, his eyes making permission to the owner of the drawings.  
"You're good with words. I look good in your drawings, too..."

"You always look good, always." Minhyuk look at him with a gaze, full of pure adoration and love, as if Hyungwon was made of precious stones. It puts a shy, soft smile on Hyungwon's face.

"Thank you. I just wished... you would wait until I'm done.. to say hi. Ask my number. Or ask me out. But I guess I have to do that first... So. Would movie and dinner this Friday be an ideal first date for you?"

Minhyuk want to curse himself for not asking him out earlier, that now he has to take matters into his hand and do it first. But Minhyuk is happy, and he can see that the other is just as happy.  
"I.. Yes, it is. It's.... more than perfect, actually."

"Great. I'm glad. Shall I walk you home now..? I'll pick you up this Friday, would be great to know where you live.."

Minhyuk nods and packs his stuff in. Hyungwon helps but insist to hold Minhyuk's sketchbook to himself. "I want to look at it as we walk home," he reasoned.  
Hyungwon took Minhyuk's hand as they made their exit.

 

 

_"You know why I like blue?"_

_"No?"_

_"You wear a blue denim shirt the first time you came in to draw. I like blue ever since."_

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, I hope you guys enjoy the read. Let me know your thoughts and what you think of it?  
> Thank youuu for reading another one of my attempt! <3


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